Ice tray



July 14, 1942. I L. L. MAILiLARD ICE TRAY Filed Nov. 21, 1959 [dam L.Arm/w Patented July 14, 1942 ICE TRAY Logan L. Mallard, Norfolk, Va,ascignor of onehalf to H. Clay Hofheimer, 11, Norfolk Va.

Application November 21,1939, Serial so. 305,552

Claims. 10!. 62-4085) This invention relates to ice cube trays of thetype which includes the incorporation of means for removing the icecubes.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide cube separating andremoving means which stress'the individual cube masses to move themrelative to one another for breakingthe bond between them and the'trayand tray partitions, through the instrumentality of cams frozen into thecubes and which act against the corresponding cam surfaces of therecesses in which the:

cams are imbedded.

Another obj ect'of the invention is the provision of a cube separatingand removing unit, removable as a whole from the tray and comprising alongitudinal partition loosely carrying a plurality of transversepartitions tiltable along horizontal axes remote from the top edges,andpref erably' at their bottom edges, with an actuating member slidablelongitudinally of the longitudinal partition having camsprojecting-downward between the transverse partitions to a depth belowthe liquid level in the tray, having freedom of bond is broken/betweenthem and the inter vening ice masses, permitting the ice cubes to freelyfail, and preventing their hanging between the transverse partitions.

A further object ofpthe invention is the provision of a cube separatingunit as described, in

which the cams resolve the actuating force into,

two components, one of which is expended in tilting the cubes againstand relative to the transverse partitions, and the other of which actsdownwardly, forcing the cubes downward between said partitions.

Another object of the invention is the provi- I sion of a cubeseparating unit as described, which first employs the .ice cubes atoneend of the tray as a fulcrum for tilting the rest of the ice mass,including the partitions, en bloc relative to the tray, thus breakingthe adhesion of the ice 7 with the sides and bottom of the tray, andthen through the action of the mechanical cams against the correlatedice cam surfaces within the cubes, forcing the said. end cubes away fromv v the surfaces of the tray which they contact, and 55 or finalmovement of the handle sliding the actutiltingthe rest of the ice cubesagainst and relative to the transverse partitions, breaking their bondswith the transverse partitions through shearing movement, and forcingthem downward between said partitions. v

A further object of the invention is to provide a cube separating unitas described, in which the actuating member is a channel, the cams ofwhich project downwardly in pairs on opposite sides of the longitudinalpartition and having shoulders facin in the direction of theretrogressive movement of said actuating member engageable with thetransverse partitions for positively aligning them in parallel planeswhen the unit is placed in the tray before freezing to determine auniform shape for the ice cubes.

Still another object of the invention is to provide the cube separatingunit with an actuating handle having initial freedom of movement wherebyit may be lifted to a convenient angular position relative to theactuating member, for grasping, without encountering the resistance ofthe ice.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a cube separatingunit removable as a whole from the tray, consisting of a longitudinalpartition "loosely carryinga plurality of transverse partitions,tiltable along horizontal axes remote from their top edges, andpreferably at their bottom edges, with an actuating member slidablelongitudinally of the longitudinal partition having cams projectingdownwardly below the transi verse partition to a depth below the liquidlevel in the tray, having freedom of movement relative to the transversepartitions whereby the latter are tilted indirectly through forcetransmitted through said cams and the intervening ice masses to saidtransverse partitions for producing the shearing movement between theice cubes and said transverse partitions and wherein the cam at one endis pivotally connected to an operating handle, said handle performingthe cube separating and ejecting function through an arcuate movement inone direction which may be differentiated into three parts, an initialmovement in which the handle can be freely raised to a convenientgrasping angle without encountering ice resistance, a further movementin which said handle operates the pivoted cam as a fulcrum against theend ice cubes forrlifting the,

rest or the ice mass, and including the transverse partitions, en blocand formoving the said fulcrum cubes in a translatory'manner relative tothe tray surfaces which they contact, the third ating member and causingthe fixed cams to act against their correlated ice cam surfaces to tiltthe transverse partitions producing shearing movement between saidpartitions and the intervening ice cubes, and to force said ice cubesdownwardly relative to said partitions.

Still another object of the invention is to provide an ice tray of theclass described, in which the resistances offered by the adherent iceare attacked progressively, so that a child can sep-' tical embodimentthereof proceeds.

In the drawing which accompanies and forms a part of the followingspecification, and

throughout the several figures of which the same characters of referencehave been employed to designate identical parts:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of an ice tray embodying the principlesof the subject invention;

Figure 2 is a longitudinal section taken along the line 2-2 of Figure 1;

Figure 3 is a cross-section taken along the line 3-3 of Figural;

Figure 4 is a perspective view showing a transverse partition or fin inseparated relation to the longitudinal partition;

Figure 5 is a perspective view showing a slightly modifiedform of thelongitudinal partition.

Referring now in detail to the several figures, the numeral I representsthe ice tray which may be of conventional shape and construction, beingslightly flared at the ends 2 and 3. The cube separator and lifter is aunitary structure consisting of'the longitudinal tray partition 4 andthe transverse tray partitions or fins 5. The transverse partitions areloosely carried by the longitudinal partition in such a manner as to ofsaid slits can be sufficiently deflected in the opposite direction toaccomplish this purpose. The transverse partitions 5 are preferablyprovided with short median slots 9 indenting their bottom edges andadapted to embrace the portion of the longitudinal partition which liesbelow the slots 6.

An actuating member ii is slidably mounted upon the top of thelongitudinal partition 4. This actuating member has the form of achannel with its middle portion or web overlying the longitudinalpartition 5, and being formed with longitudinal slots i2 which receivethe upstanding lugs i3 formed on the upper edge of the longitudinalpartition 4. The slots l2 are longer than the lugs lt'soas to provide arange of sliding movement of the actuating member H relative to thelongitudinal partition. The lugs l3 are headed in any suitable manner asby a washer, and riveted so as to permanently attach the actuatingmember H to the partition structure.

The flanges i8 and i5 are cut away, forming notches H6 at the pointswhere the actuating member overlies the transverse partitions 5 so as toprovide freedom of movement between the ac-.

These cams project downwardly below the liquid level in the tray i. Theforward faces of said cams slope upwardly and forwardly.

A handle l8 overlies the actuating member ll preferably lying fiatagainst said actuating member when the cube separating and liftingmechatilt on a horizontal axis which is located at some pointother thanadjacent the top edgesof said transverse partitions. As shown, thepartitions pass through substantially triangular slots 6 formed at equalintervals along the longitudinal partition t. Said slots extend abouthalf way up the partition 4, andthe transverse partitions 5 are providedin their upper edges with the median slots 1, the latter embracing theportion of the longitudinal partition about the slots 6. The bottom ofthe triangular slots 6 is preferably just about the width of thematerial of the transverse partitions 5, so thatthe latter can swingabout a horizontal axis which passes through the bottom wall of theslots 6. 'The transverse partitions can be introduced into the slots 6in any suitable manner, but the disclosure suggests that thelongitudinal partition 4 shall be formed with slits 8 extending from itslower edge into the slots 6 which slits can be temporarily opened forthe insertion of the transverse partitions by forcibly deflecting themetal of the longitudinal partition 4 oneither side of the slits 8 so asto open them. The resiliency of the metal may be relied upon to restorethe longitudinal partition to its planiform shape after the insertion ofthe transverse partitions 5; or the metal at the sides tudinalpartition.

nism is in repose position. Said handle is of twopart construction,being pivotally connected at I 9 to a sturdy shank 20, which at one endcarries a cam 21 pivotallymounted at 22'to the longi- It will beunderstood that the forward portion of the shank 20 is bifurcated, asindicated at 23, and that the cam 2| is duplicated on opposite sides ofthe longitudinal partition. The shank 20 passes through a hole 24 in theactuating member H and abuts against the forward edge 25 of said holefor imparting slidable movement to the actuating member H.

The handle 16, for the sake of rigidity, is provided with the lateralflanges 26 and 27. These flanges adjacent the pivoted end of said handleare provided with underturn'ed lugs 28 forming a strap. The shank 2B isprovided with a narrowed portion 29 extending into the space definedwithin said handle by the underturned lugs 28, with lost motion, so thatthe handle 26 can be readily lifted through a small angle relative tothe actuating member to facilitate its being grasped, withoutencountering any ice resistance.

A characteristic feature of the subject invention is that the cams I Ido not directly contact the transverse partitions 5, for tilting them,at any time during the reciprocatory movement of the actuating member.This leaves the transverse partitions 5, which are loosely mounted withrespect to the longitudinal partition, free to oscillate in a desultorymanner relative to one another for the purpose of permitting the cubesto drop from between the transverse partitions without binding betweenthem, as is generally the case where the transverse partitions arerigidly parallel to one another.

The cams I! are provided rearwardly with the extensions 30, which whenthe actuating member cam 2i, extend below the water level in the tray.

The water is then frozen solidly into ice. The cams which are imbeddedin the ice, thus mold for themselves cooperating ice cam surfaces.

In the separation and removal of the ice cubes, the handle I8 is firstlifted through the small initial angle permitted by the lost motion atthe point 3| between the thin part 29 of the shank '20 and the strapformed by the underturned lugs 28. The handle is moved up a littlefurther, rotating the, cam 2| about the pivot 22. The surface of the cam2| is eccentric to the pivot 22,

- so that the first result of the rotation of this cam against itscorrelated ice cam surface will be to utilize the two end cubes engagedby the cams 2|, as a fulcrum, causing the upward tilting of the rest ofthe ice in the tray, exclusive of the said two endcubes, en bloc withthe embedded transverse partitions 5. This lifting takes placeprogressively fromthe left hand end 32 of the ice block, breaking theadhesions of said block with the bottom and side walls of the tray, and

oscillate about an approximately vertical axis, so that the cubes whenbeing ejected downwardly,

will not bind between adjacent transverse partitions, but will fallfreelyfrom between the confining walls of the ice cube separating andremoving unit.

Inasmuch as the said unit is rigidly frozen with respect to the tray,the initial functioning of the device can be accomplished without anyattempt to hold the unit in place in thetray. After the ice mass,excluding the end cubes which act as a fulcrum, has been broken awayfrom the tray,it is necessary to hold the unit down to the tray foraccomplishing the final individual separation of the ice cubes, So easyis the action of the device, however, that it is merely necessary toplace the hand lightly upon the top of the of course, shearing the iceblocks from the two end cubes which are serving as a fulcrum. The

tilting or lifting of the ice block and the rotation of the nose 33 ofthe cam 2| away from the adjacent transverse partition -5 makes room forthe longitudinal movement of the end cubes being pressed upon, and asthe eccentric cam 21 is rotated further, it will press laterally againstits correlated ice cam surface in a direction to force the end cubesaway from the adjacent end wall and side walls of the tray, thusbreaking their adhesions to said end and side walls and setting them.free;

The lifting of the ice block from the bottom of .the tray and thecreation of space longitudinally of said tray by thelifting of said iceblock gives in the following manner;

which the shank engages the edge of the actuating member, the latter-isthen slidably moved toward the left, as viewed in Figure l,

causing the cams II. to move forwardly against their correlated ice camsurfaces, tilting the cubes actuating member while reciprocating saidmemher. This enhances the sanitary value of the device, as it isunnecessary ever to touch the ice cubes with the hand.

The fact that the cams i1 and 2! operate from within the ice cubesrather than upon the ice cubes, makes it possible to separate the icecubes intact substantially without shattering.-

In Figure 5,I have shown a modifled form of the invention, in which thetriangular slot 6 of the longitudinal partition 4 opens in the loweredge of said longitudinal partition with a width suflicient to permitthe insertion of the transverse partition 5. The longitudinal partitionis provided adjacent the sides of the open end of this slot withextensions or tits 35, which can be upset or riveted together after thetransverse partition is in place to occlude the end 9 ofv said V slotand retain the transverse partition in'place.

V When the handle is moved to a position in From the above, it will beunderstood that I have provided an improved ice bube tray of the typewhich includes the incorporation of meansfor separating and removing thecubes, whichis simple in construction, easy to operate, and which lendsitself to economical mass production. It provides a device of thecharacter described, which attacks the ice resistances progressively,and in a novel manner, requiring so little force as to be easily withinthe scope of effort of. a small child. This very ease of operation alsominimizes the strains to which the mechanical elements are subjected,thus prolonging the life of the apparatus and minimizing the necessityfor repair.

While I have in the above description disclosed what I believe to be apreferred andpractical form of the invention, it will be understood toforcibly against the transverse partitions which are ina forwardposition with respect to said cubes, and tilting said partitions,thereby producing a shearing movement between the parsaid cubes to saidtransverse partitions.

It will be noted that the forward faces 34 of tilting the cubes andtilting the. transverse partitions, the other component actingdownwardly and thrusting the cubes downwardly relative to the actuatingmember. As has been previously stated, the fact that there is no directmechanical contdct between the cams II and the transverse.

partitions, permits the latter to freely wobble or 7 titions and cubeswhich breaks the adhesion of tal axes remote from the top of. saidtransverse partitionameans for providing longitudinal tilt-. movement ofsaid cubes in said tray and the those skilled in the art that thespecific details of construction and arrangement of parts as shown anddescribed are by way of example, and

not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention defined inthe appended claims.

'What I claim as my invention'is: I 1. In combination with an ice cubetray having ice cubes frozen therein, cube separating meansthereforcomprising a longitudinal tray partition and transverse traypartitions carried thereby, and tiltable through a small angle abouthorizonand movable longitudinally so as to coact withtheir correlatedice cam surfaces, the bottom sur- Iaces of said cams being substantiallynormal to said partition.

2. In combination with an ice cube tray, cube separating means thereforcomprising a longitudinal tray partition and transverse tray partitionscarried thereby, tiltable through a small angle about horizontal axesremote from the top of said transverse partitions, an actuator mountedto slide longitudinally of said longitudinal partition having pairs offixed cams depending on opposite sides of said longitudinal partitionbelow the liquid level in said tray, into each of the cube molds definedby said partitions and the tray walls, except the molds at one end ofsaid tray, said fixed cams having free movement with respect to saidtransverse partitions throughout the range of movement of said actuatorin a cube separating direction, an operating handle comprising a rigidportion straddling the longitudinal partition and pivoted thereto in thezone of the said end molds and having eccentric cams at its lower end onopposite sides of said long tudinal partition and depending below theliquid level in said tray, said rigid portion passing through a slot insaid actuator and being engageable with the front end of said slot withlost motion whereby it turns the eccentric cams prior to sliding theactuator, said handle "including arepose in which it lies flat upon saidactuator and being tiltable upwardly through a convenient angle forgrasping, without encountering ice resistance.

3. In combination with an ice cube tray, cube separating means thereforcomprising a longitudinal tray partition and transverse tray partitionscarried thereby, mounted in upwardly flaring slots in said longitudinalpartition and loosely retained therein, and tiltable through a smallangle about horizontal axes remote from the top of said transversepartitions, an actuator mounted to slide longitudinally upon said1ongitudina'l partition having pairs of fixed cams depending on oppositesides of said longitudinal partition below the liquid level in said trayinto each of the cube molds defined by said partitions and the traywalls, except the molds at one end of said tray, saidfixed cams havingfree movement with respect to said transverse partitions throughout thrange of movement of said actuator in a cube separating-direction, an.operating handle comprising a rigid portion straddling the longitudinalpartition and pivoted thereto in the zone of the said end molds, havingeccentric cams at its lower end on opposite sides of said longitudinalpartition and depending below the liquid level in said tray, said rigidportion passing through a slot in said actuator and being engageablewith the front end of said slot with lost motion, whereby it turns theeccentric cams prior to sliding the actuator, and being engageable withthe rear end of said slot with lost motion for moving said actuatorretrogressively, all of said cams having portions engageable with saidtransverse partitions when said actuator is retrogressively moved foraligning said transverse partitions in parallel planes, said handleincluding a grasping portion pivoted to said rigid portion with limitedlost motion, having a position of repose in which it lies flat upon saidactuator, and being tiltable upwardly through a convenient angle forgrasping without encountering ice resistance.

4. In combination with an ice cube tray ageaae adapted to have ice cubesfrozen therein, cube separating means therefor comprising a longitudinaltray partition, transverse tray partitions carried thereby and tiltablethrough a small angle about horizontal axes remote from the top of saidtransverse partitions, and an actuator mounted to slide longitudinallyof said longitudinal partition and having cams adapted to depend belowthe unfrozen liquid level in said tray and into each of the cube moldsdefined by said partitions and by the tray walls, said cams having freemovement with respect to said transverse partitions throughout the rangeof movement of said actuator in a direction adapted to release thecubes, said cams being adapted to coact with the respectively adjacentice cam surfaces within the cubes, the movement of said actuator in acube releasing direction being adapted to tilt the cubes and saidtransverse partitions by force transmitted to said partitions throughthe cubes, the bottom surfaces of said cams being substantially normalto said partition.

5. In combination with an ice cube tray adapted to have ice cubes irozentherein, cube separating means therefor comprising a longitudinal traypartition, transverse tray partitions carried thereby and tiltable abouthorizontal axes remote from the top of said transverse partitions, andloosely mounted for desultory oscillation about approximately verticalaxes, and an actuator mounted to slide longitudinally of saidlongitudinal partition and having cams adapted to depend below theunfrozen liquid level in said tray into each of the cube molds definedby said partitions and by the tray walls, said cams being adapted tohave free movement with respect to said transverse partitions throughoutthe range of movement of said actuator in a direction adapted to releasethe cubes, said cams having means engageable with said transversepartition for aligning them in planes approximately parallel with eachother when said actuator reaches the limit of its movement in theopposite direction, said cams being adapted to coact with therespectively adjacent ice cam surfaces within the cubes when saidactuator is moved in a cube releasing direction, said movement beingadapted to tilt the cubes and said transverse partitions by forcetransmitted to said partitions through the cubes, the bottom surfaces ofsaid cams being substantially normal to said partition.

6. The combination of claim 4 wherein the forward faces of said cams areupwardly inclined in the direction of the cube releasing movement ofsaid actuator.

7. The combination of claim 5 wherein the forward faces of said cams areupwardly inclined -in the direction of the cube releasing movement ofsaid actuator.

8. The combination of claim 5 wherein said cams are arranged in pairsadapted to depend on opposite sides of said longitudinal partition belowthe unfrozen liquid level in said cube molds,

said cams having means engageable with said transverse partitions onopposite sides of said longitudinal partition for the alignment of saidtransverse partitions.

9. In combination with an ice cube, tray adapted to have ice cubesfrozen therein, cube separating'means therefor comprising a longitudinaltray partition, transverse tray partitions carried thereby and tiltablethrough a small angle about horizontal axes remote from 'the top of saidtransverse partitions, and an actuator mounted to slide longitudinallyof said longitudinal partition and having fixed cams adapted to dependbelow the unfrozen liquid level in said tray and into each of the cubemolds defined by said partitions and the tray walls with the exceptionof the cube molds at oneend of said tray, said fixed cams being adaptedto have free movement with respect to said transverse partitionsthroughout the range of movement of said actuon said handle in the zoneof said and molds and adapted to depend below the unfrozen liquid levelin said tray, said eccentric. cam being adapted to coact with threspectively adjacent ice cam suriaces within the cubes in said endmolds, the

*bottom surfaces of said cams being substantially nomigal to saidpartition.

10.* The combination of claim 9 that includes an operating handlepivoted to said longitudinal" partition and engageable with saidactuator in a manner adapted to move said actuator ina direction adaptedto release said cubes, after an initial period of lost motion, aneccentric cam on said handle in the'zone of said end molds adapted todepend below the level of the unfrozen liquid in said tray, saideccentric cam being adapted to be engageable with adjacent ice camsurfaces within said end cubes and to act against said end cubes-as afulcrum prior to the movement of said actuator.

LOGAN L. MALLARD.

